Dean Brennan felt Barnet's 1-0 win at Altrincham summed up the mentality of his players as they edged closer to the National League title on Saturday.
It was the third successive week the Bees had emerged victorious by a single goal as, with several key players unavailable, Rhys Browne’s seventh goal of the season was enough to continue an astonishing run of 12 wins from 13 league outings.
“It just epitomises what we’re all about this season, a 1-0 victory up against it with some massive players (unavailable),” Brennan told the club website.
“No Tavares, no Oluwo, no Shelton. Grimwood, Clifford and young Brunt came on and showed the other side of the game. They were all about the other side of the game. The defensive duties, the physicality, and I just thought it epitomised what the group’s all about."
After securing an eighth successive win and now undefeated in 24 National League matches, the Bees went 14 points clear of second-placed York City, who were beaten 2-1 at Braintree earlier on Non-League Day.
Brennan added: “We’ve got togetherness. We’ve created that. We’ve got players who are prepared to go to the line, and they should be proud of themselves with the position they’ve put themselves in.
"88 points from 39 games. The output of points has just been phenomenal, and 24 unbeaten now, eight wins on the bounce, another clean sheet. There’s just so many things I’m ticking off. It’s all down to the players. It’s got nothing to do with me; it’s the players.
“I just put them together and pick them. I said the other day in an interview I did with Sky Sports – I could just turn up on a Thursday, leave the balls and bibs out, and they could take the session themselves. I’ve got real leaders in the camp.”
With a 100-point total in mind for Brennan, the National League champions-elect take on Gateshead next weekend, looking to avenge a 2-0 defeat at the hands of The Heed and take a step closer to promotion to the EFL.
He said: “They’re like our voodoo team, aren’t they? For some reason, we ain’t managed to beat them. I don’t think we’ve beaten them under my reign anyway. So, we want to change that. You know, we have to change that. We’ve got the right attitude to do that.
“We’re back at home. They’re a very technical side, and they’ve got the philosophy within their group. You can see what they want to do, and they’ll be looking to bounce back. I think they lost today, and they lost the other day to Tamworth.
“They’re looking to bounce back, and we’re looking to get to our goal, which is 100 points. That’s our target. It’s been our target ever since the first day of pre-season.
“That’s the pledge we made with the players and the players made with me. That’s our target – we want 12 more.”
The Bees host Gateshead this weekend before travelling to Braintree Town on Saturday, April 5.
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